Re: [amsat-bb] microsats & cubesats

["Timothy J. Salo" <salo@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

> Date: Thu, 29 Nov 2001 16:48:50 -0500 (EST)
> From: James Sharp <jsharp@psychoses.org>
> To: <amsat-bb@AMSAT.Org>
> Subject: [amsat-bb] microsats & cubesats
> 
> 
> I keep seeing all these people building microsats and cubesats for school
> engineering projects and I wonder to myself...would it be practical for an
> individual or small group of non-education affiliated (just basically a
> group of really bored ham geeks) to build their own microsat for
> launch.

One of the most interesting examples of what a bunch of guys (in this
case) can do is StenSat:

	http://www.stensat.org/

The Web pages list seven team members.  If I recall correctly,
the team that built the original SentSat contained four members.

> And what are people doing for launches?  Are they riding piggyback on
> other launches or is there some company basically giving away rides into
> orbit?

Perhaps, the best opportunity for a bunch of folks off the street is
to ride on a larger academic/amateur satellite.  Look at the Stanford
SSDL stuff:

	http://ssdl.stanford.edu/opal/
	http://ssdl.stanford.edu/cubesat/

And, here is a picture of SentSat being loaded into Opal:

	http://ssdl.stanford.edu/opal/PhotoGallery/StanfordPicoLoading/
		StensatCloseUpInLauncher.html

I understand that StenSat got a launch opportunity because another
payload didn't make it in time.

> I just think it would be pretty cool to have someone listen to a downlink
> and think "Hey, that me & my two buds put up".  Pipe dream? Maybe...just a
> thought.

	Indeed!  (Never give up.)

-tjs
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